EU4Youth: “School Garden” for agricultural entrepreneurship

About of project:

Period: 01.07.2018 — 30.06.2022

Budget: €1,579,000; EU contribution: € 1,500,000

Implementing agency: Belarusian Green Cross, NGO

Locations: Belarus (Homieĺ, Minsk and Viciebsk regions), Ukraine, (Chernihiv, Kyiv and Zhytomyr oblasts), Moldova (Ștefan Vodă and Criuleni districts)

Description

Rural population in Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine is rapidly aging. Without any perspectives for growth and development, youth leaves for cities, which results in instability of the rural sector and increases national food security risks. The project will facilitate the development of vocational agrarian education in rural areas, which will lead to expansion of economic opportunities and youth integration in agriculture.

Goals and objectives: facilitate expansion of opportunities for employment of young people residing in rural areas, including those affected by the Chernobyl disaster, their active involvement in social life and economics by developing modern labour skills, managerial and business skills; promotion of promising professional skills.

Interim outcomes: the project will provide for establishment of incubators at rural schools with school gardens for training youth in state-of-the-art technologies of raising high value-added agricultural products. It will allow enhancing youth knowledge and skills in organic farming and entrepreneurship, and expand youth employability in rural areas. The industrial incubators will be linked with local communities, educational institutions and business entities; also, they will be incorporated into the general educational and economic environment.

Schools in more than 60 settlements are expected to take part in the project activities. About six thousand young people and two thousand families will gain new knowledge and practical skills in the field of agricultural entrepreneurship. Schools and students in 30 settlements will gain access to 8 industrial incubators/growth hubs, as well as a chance to cooperate with 8 companies/cooperatives/collectors, which will facilitate expansion of opportunities for rural youth.

Teachers will learn about the new practices of organizing youth training in modern agriculture in their schools, as well as opening new industrial incubators there.

Organic agricultural products/by-products and services produced in the school gardens are planned to be distributed through social cooperatives and collectors in kindergartens, social centres for the elderly/disabled persons, among disadvantaged families, etc. Thus, the project will bring together various social groups, make a positive impact on residents of the settlements and improve their employability.

Contacts:

Vladimir Shevtsov, Project Manager

+375 1776 56405, +375 29 627 7954, shevtsov@greencross.by

Vladimir Pustoshilo, Chief Manager on School Gardens

+375 1776 56405, +375 33 638 88 45, agroschool@greencross.by